Book Review and Giveaway: Other People's Houses

By Jami Deise

It’s generally not a good sign when a book starts with a detailed list of characters and a map. It signals a cast so lengthy that readers are going to have trouble following who’s who, and who is related to whom. Indeed, when I first opened Abbi Waxman’s latest novel, Other People’s Houses, and saw a long list of people and the aforementioned map, I shuddered. I have enough trouble keeping track of real people, much less fictional ones. And it did take me awhile to remember who was who. Not only was the cast lengthy, but Waxman chose to write the novel in omniscient point-of-view, which has fallen out of favor. (It’s hard to distinguish from “head-hopping.”) Still, I read on, and several chapters in, I was hooked.

Even with its multiple viewpoints, Other People’s Houses is mostly Frances’s story. She’s married to Michael; they have three children but no sex, and she is mom to the entire street. The story kicks off when she walks in on Anne having sex with a man who isn’t Anne’s husband, Charlie. Now Frances is stuck with a burdensome secret, and Anne knows she has to break off the affair before it blows up in her face. Also living on the street are Bill and his son Lucas (his wife Julie is on a mysterious work trip), and Iris and Sara and their son Wyatt.

Anne’s affair is the spine of the story, but everyone has something going on. Even the elementary-school aged children get scenes of their own. At first, I found this annoying, but then it became necessary for the story. Anne’s affair affects everyone, even other people’s children. Still, even in Anne’s point of view, Waxman never gets to the heart of why she cheated. Frances is the heart of the story, and the character most easy to identify with. She’s given up her career to take care of her husband, children, and house, and gained thirty pounds in the process. She’s lost her identity, sexuality, and sense of self in service to others and the image of ideal motherhood. Anne and Iris, who each have multiple chapters in their points-of-view, remain at an emotional arm’s length.

At times, the novel is funnier than the storylines, and several scenes and lines had me laughing out loud. Other times, I teared up at the characters’ pain, especially the children’s. Waxman and her characters make several cutting observations that had me highlighting my Kindle.

Other People’s Houses will remind readers of Liane Moriarty’s work, albeit without murders, and Moriarty’s fans will enjoy the book. Set in an upscale suburb of Los Angeles, Frances and her neighbors have first-world problems, but so do Moriarty’s. Waxman might not be lucky enough to have HBO commission a series starring Reese Witherspoon, but if she is, I would certainly be watching.

If nothing else, the book is an important reminder to never cheat with someone who doesn’t have as much to lose. And to make sure your phone isn’t hooked to any other devices before texting secrets.

Thanks to Berkley for the book in exchange for an honest review. They have one copy to give away!

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Giveaway ends April 8th at midnight EST.